Lock Down

On the problem of evil & the necessity of making the unconscious conscious

That dark part inside, do not leave it untied, for the tyranny it could release.

Keep it locked down, though it must be around — that ancient, satanic beast.

Trickster in story, many faces bear he, all-throughout the chapters of time.

But the force is the same, the “problem-of-the-game”, into which many actively climb.

See it starts with a seed — revenge, envy, greed — from this sprouts warped-justification.

And before long you’d see, those stronger than me, the power gives them elation.

Understand why? I think not, though part of the plot — I concur it very well may be.

For the tyger tigers, some seem to have their place, in the worlds which we do see.

And it's easy when they — with still seedlings, say — “T’was for the good of the nation”

Though truly, they feel, though it’s not really real, they can do anything: judges, with all information.

But cometh the day: they know well who they obey, branches mangled, black, decayed.

Alas by then its quite late, their souls half-escaped, even spite they would make their crusade.

So if it gets free, to whatever degree, and any power: magnified, recall?

And those that espouse, to take down his house, may watch their own houses fall.

Integrate it I’ve read, and control it instead, of that I’m not sure I’m afraid.

Because no one would stand — finer than sand, the dust into which they’d fade.

And as the will to be great, consumes many of late, it is to this seed, that many befall.

But though clever is he, he’s not master of me, and so cannot be master of all.

So this is all well, because Love is the shell — and Love is more powerful than he.

Be that as it may, we must not let it decay — our Love for Life, you see.

For Life is creation, and him? Domination, which is pleasurable, yes! You must know!

But it’s a slippery slope, paved with scant hope — and you choose the tree that you grow.

So stare through the bars, not just up at the stars, try to know what it is that you see.

Stare into its eyes, understand its disguise, but keep your hand — firmly, on the key.

Some footnotes*
This poem is partially trying to make the point that all humans have the capacity to commit greatly immoral acts. The Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung made the case that — in order to fully become who you are — you need to become aware of what he calls the shadow, that is, those aspects of the personality that you choose to reject and repress. And if you do not do this, they will come out in ways that you may not expect and that you do not have full control over.

Thus, in hindsight, I am not so sure that, locking it down — when speaking about the shadow — is the right approach. That being said, I do think that true evil does indeed exist and that it is something that all people have the capacity to become in specific circumstances, and if they make that choice — so realizing this is important (‘stare into its eyes’).

I sort of wrote this without fully rationalizing what I was writing in that moment, so please take it as such (with some salt).